Today was the big day! We took a rainy walk to the State Dept. of Adoption this morning located in the heart of Kiev, experiencing some of the deja vu jitters that we felt the last time. The couple before us was speaking Italian and we saw a few tour groups outside visiting an old ornate Ukrainian orthodox church.
Our meeting went well and we were happy to see Maria, the special lady who helped us the last time. We were a little surprised to see several pictures of us with Benjamin on her office wall!
During the meeting, we were shown pictures and files of a couple of children. One in particular caught our interest, that of a sweet 5 year old girl. At this point our intention is to travel to the region where her orphanage is located tonight or tomorrow. Zhenia said this is an overnight train ride west of Kiev. We have been told that in this region they speak only Ukrainian and they prefer to give their children to Ukrainian families. So we will speak with the director of the orphanage and see if they may be favorable with us.
Thanks for your continued prayers in this matter. We know that Zhenia has a wonderful way with people and, if this is the child for us, everything will work out. We'll keep you posted!
PS The pictures below are of Deb and Ben in front of the SDA building.
You guys are awesome! Praying :-)
ReplyDeleteDeb, Giles, and Ben! I am so excited for you and check your blog daily along with some faithful friends at work. I can't wait to hear more. I took a quick trip to gymboree already (don't worry - receipt in hand if exchange needed) and I picked up some ADORABLE outfits. Thank you for giving me this joy. Abby is adjusting well, some excitement with her last night, but everything is fine. Email when you have time and I fill you in. All is well and we are so enjoying her! We just love her. Matty sends a big wrestling boy hug to his buddy Ben and we pray for you daily. God bless and enjoy yourselves! Love, The Swantons
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